FOCUS ON THE DETAILS
Hey everyone! Kristen here, and I am on the blog today to show you all my special occasion make. Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year, and definitely the best time to make all things fancy!
Over the last few days many of the other special occasion bloggers have sewed up absolutely stunning Molly and Pearl dresses. So, I thought mashing components from each pattern would be the perfect way to showcase my favorite details from both.
With any special occasion dress the details are so important! One of my favorite ways to make unique style dresses is to mix and match different components from varies patterns. For this dress I mashed Molly, Pearl, and Mila.
I will forever be in love with Molly’s scoop back. In my opinion, it just screams special occasion! The back gives dresses the perfect elegant feel without a lot of work, which I feel most sewers can appreciate! To achieve this look with the Molly bodice, simply leave the collar off.
In addition to the bodice, I also used Molly’s skirt with a slight modification. I used the measurements for the top version, and then added a ruffle that would make the skirt match the measurements of the dress! For example, if your top calls for 8″ and the dress calls for 11 1/2″, then you would cut a 3 7/8″ ruffle [ equation: 11 1/2 – 8 + 3/8 (seam allowance)]. Once I knew the length of my ruffle, I then just doubled the top’s width and cut two!
Of course, what is a special occasion dress without LACE?! Lace is a great detail to add to spiffy up any dress to help give it an over the top feel.
One of the most beloved parts of the Pearl dress is the sleeves. The little poof that the Pearl sleeves offers is everything I ever need in a sleeve. We live in Florida which means our Christmas season is usually very warm. Molly’s sleeveless bodice would honestly work for us, but I felt that the puff sleeve really gave this dress a step up and helped it look more formal (or as formal as a 6-9 month dress can be lol).
To mash Molly’s bodice with Pearl’s sleeve, I simply did not sew my arm syce’s together. Once I sewed my neckline I turned it inside out as the pattern calls for and top stitched. Then, I added the Pearl sleeves!
Next, I took Mila’s big back bow and added it to my special occasion dress! I struggled with which color bow I wanted, but I am so thankful I decided on white! I feel the white really added a bright and light feel to the dress. Choosing clip dot for the bow was a stretch for me. It was one of those things that I couldn’t visualize in my head, but I decided it was worth the risk! And man, I am so glad I did! The extra texture the clip dot provided was exactly what this dress needed to put it over the top.
The final detail that I included in my special occasion dress, was this vintage Christmas hankie! I found this gorgeous piece at my local thrift store for only $0.99! Talk about a steal!! I sewed one corner of the hankie to the front of my bodice because I wanted it to be the focus point of the dress.
I am seriously so in love with how this mash up turned out. I hope that this piece helps inspire you to make your own special occasion dress with all the beautiful details that the sewing world as to offer!
ENJOY!
Kristen
